November 16, 2011, Atlanta, GA … In a letter sent to Tennessee State Representative Rick Womick today, the Anti-Defamation League called on Womick to repudiate his "shameful, deeply disturbing" remarks regarding Islam and Muslim Americans serving in the U.S. Military.

Womick is reported to have told a crowd of 150 people at a Nashville Veteran's Day conference that "We cannot have Muslims in our military because we cannot trust them." Womick also said "if they are devout Muslims and follow the Quran and the Sunnah then I feel threatened because they're commanded to kill me."

"Singling out and stereotyping the entire Muslim American community for special scrutiny or suspicion is discriminatory and offensive," said Bill Nigut, Southeast Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League in his letter to Rep. Womick. "As there are numerous Americans of Islamic faith bravely and diligently serving our nation in the U.S. Armed Forces, your statements about Muslims in the military are particularly shameful and outrageous," Nigut said in the letter.

For decades, ADL has monitored and reported on all forms of extremist threats to the safety and security of Americans, including radical Islamic terrorism. "No organizations is better positioned to understand the difference between Islamic extremists who do, in fact, want to do harm to our country and the many Muslims who are simply trying live their lives as mainstream Americans," Nigut said.

ADL is the world’s leading anti-hate organization. Founded in 1913 in response to an escalating climate of anti-Semitism and bigotry, its timeless mission is to protect the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment for all. Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of hate with the same vigor and passion. A global leader in exposing extremism, delivering anti-bias education, and fighting hate online, ADL is the first call when acts of anti-Semitism occur. ADL’s ultimate goal is a world in which no group or individual suffers from bias, discrimination or hate.